Cutting and folding machine



Dec. 6, 1938. Y J. E. MEYER 2,139,241

CUTTING AND FOLDING MACHINE Filed Nov. 4, 19s? INVENTOR frzyg WATTORNEY$ Patented Dec. 6, 1938 UNITED STATES CUTTING- AND' FOLDINGMACHINE Joseph E. Meyer, Westerly, R. I., assignor to C. B.

Cottrell & Sons Company, Westerly, R. I., a corporation of DelawareApplication November 4, 1937, Serial No. 172,733

6 Claims.

In high speed folders where sheets are cut from associated travelingwebs it has been usual to provide impaling pins for carrying the leadingends of the webs around collecting or folding cylinders. The use ofthese impaling pins has been a detriment, especially in high grademagazine work because of the necessity of using extra paper so that thepinholes will come outside of the trim.

The object-of my invention is to eliminate the impaling pins and theirdelicate operating mechanism which are, of themselves, speed curtailingelements.

My invention comprises, generally, a pair of cutting and foldingcylinders having coacting cutting and folding devices, the cuttingdevices serving to almost sever successive groups of sheets from thewebs, and the folding devices serving to fold the alternate groups ofsheetsto each cylinder and to tear the sheets of each group as it isbeing folded, from the sheets of their next preceding group, therebycausing the sheets of one group to carry the leading ends of the webspartly around one cylinder and the next succeeding folded group to carrythe leading ends of the webs partly around the other cylinder.

A practical embodiment of my invention is represented in theaccompanying drawing, in

which Fig. 1 represents in diagrammatic side elevation a folder showingone pair of coacting folding devices in the act of folding a group ofsheets to one of the cutting and folding cylinders and at the same timetearing the leading ends of the sheets of that group from the tail endsof a next preceding folded group carried by the other cutting andfolding cylinder;

Fig. 2 represents a similar view with the coacting folding and cuttingcylinders advanced one-fourth of a revolution and showing one pair ofcoacting cutting devices operating to almost sever a group of sheetscarried by one cylinder from the associated webs being fed into thefolder;

Fig. 3 represents a face view of a knife having a serrated edge with aplurality of cut-out portions therein; and

Fig. 4 represents a detail plan view of a web showing the type of cutmade by the knife to almost sever the sheets therefrom.

The traveling webs are denoted by l and the pair of coasting webassociating and feeding rolls by 2, 3. The pair of coacting cutting andfolding cylinders 4, 5 may be driven at a predetermined speed, by anywell known or approved means not shown herein.

Each of the cylinders 4, 5 carries at equally spaced distances aroundits periphery, a cutting knife, folding jaws, a cutting block and afolding blade. The cutting knife 6, folding jaws 1, cutting block .8 andfolding blade 9 on the cylinder 4 are arranged to coact with theirrespective cutting block to, folding blade II, cutting knife I 2 andfolding jaws It on the cylinder 5, to almost sever successive groups ofsheets from the associated webs, to fold alternate groups of sheets toeach cylinder and to tear the group of sheets as it is being folded onone cylinder away from the next preceding folded group on the other 1cylinder. The cutting knife is shown as having a serrated cutting edge[4 with a plurality of cutout portions l 5 along the same to leave shortuncut portions [5 between the sheets and webs as the sheets are almostsevered from the webs.

The deliveries which I have shown for the cutting and folding cylindersmay be constructed, arranged and operated as follows:

Rotary delivery cylinders l1, l8 coact with and travel at a lesser speedthan their respective cut.- ting and folding cylinders 4, 5. In thepresent instance these delivery cylinders are caused to travel attwo-thirds the surface speed of the cutting and folding cylinders by anyWell known or approved means not shown herein. h

Three equally spaced sets of grippers I9, 20, 2| are carried by thedelivery cylinder ll, and three equally spaced sets of grippers 22, 23,24 are carried by the delivery cylinder l8.

Endless delivery carriers 25, 26 are arranged to receive the foldedproducts from their respective delivery cylinders l1, l8 and to advancethe folded products outwardly away from the folding mechanism. Pressurerollers 21, 28 serve to hold the folded groups of sheets against theirrespective cutting and folding cylinders 4, 5 while the folded groups ofsheets are being transferred to the delivery cylinders I1, l8.

In operation: Presupposing a plurality of associated webs are to be fedto the cutting and folding cylinders. As these webs are fed through thecutting and folding cylinders the coacting cutting devices on thecylinders almost sever successive groups of sheets from the webs. Thefolding devices on the cutting and folding cylinders serve to foldalternate groups of sheets to each cylinder where the folded groups ofsheets are delivered to their respective delivery.

It will be understood that as one group of sheets is folded onto one ofthe cutting and folding cylinders the leading ends of the sheets beingfolded are torn from the tail ends of the sheets which comprise the nextpreceding folded group of sheets on the other cutting and foldingcylinder. This obviates the necessity of impaling pins on thetwo-cutting and folding cylinders for temporarily holding the leadingends of the webs or sheets thereon.

It will also be understood that the cutting and folding devices may beof any well known or approved form and may be operated in the well knownmanner by suitable means not shown herein.

It will also be understood that by the term rotary cylinder as usedherein, I intend to include rotary carriers of any form capable ofadvancing the webs and sheets in the desired paths.

It is evident that various changes may be resorted to in theconstruction, form and arrangement of the several parts withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of my invention, and hence I do notintend to be limited to the particular embodiment herein shown anddescribed.

What I claim is:

1. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a web or associated webs thereto, cutting devices on saidcylinders operating to almost sever successive sheets or groups ofsheets from the web or webs, and folding devices on said cylindersoperating to fold alternate sheets or groups of sheets to each cylinderand to tear each sheet or group of sheets as it is being folded, fromthe next preceding folded sheet or group of sheets, thereby causing thefolded sheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of theweb or webs partly around one cylinder and the next succeeding foldedsheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web orwebs partly around the other cylinder.

2. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a Web or associated webs thereto, cutting devices on saidcylinders operating to almost sever successive sheets or groups ofsheets from the web or webs, folding devices on said cylinders operatingto fold alternate sheets or groups of sheets to each cylinder and totear each sheet or group of sheets as it is being folded, from the nextpreceding folded sheet or group of sheets, thereby causing the foldedsheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web orwebs partly around one cylinder and the next succeeding folded sheet orgroup of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web or webspartly around the other cylinder, and a sheet delivery for eachcylinder.

3. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a web or associated webs thereto, cutting devices on saidcylinders operating to almost sever successive sheets or groups ofsheets from the web or webs, folding devices on said cylinders operatingto fold alternate sheets or groups of sheets to each cylinder and totear each sheet or group of sheets as it is being folded, from the nextpreceding folded sheet or group of sheets, thereby causing the foldedsheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web orwebs partly around one cylinder and the next succeeding folded sheet orgroup of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web or webspartly around the other cylinder, and a sheet delivery for each cylindercomprising a rotary delivery cylinder and an endless delivery carrier.

4. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a web or associated webs thereto, cutting devices on saidcylinders operating to almost sever successive sheets or groups ofsheets from the web or webs, folding devices on said cylinders operatingto fold alternate sheets or groups of sheets to each cylinder and totear each sheet or group of sheets as it is being folded, from the nextpreceding folded sheet or group of sheets, thereby causing the foldedsheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web orwebs partly around one cylinder and the next succeeding folded sheet orgroup of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web or webspartly around the other cylinder, and a sheet delivery for each cylindercomprising a rotary delivery cylinder and an endless delivery carrier,the rotary delivery cylinders having a lesser surface speed than thecutting and folding cylinders.

5. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a web or associated webs thereto, cutting devices on saidcylinders operating to almost sever successive sheets or groups ofsheets from the Web or webs, folding devices on said cylinders operatingto fold alternate sheets or groups of sheets to each cylinder and totear each sheet or group of sheets as it is being folded, from the nextpreceding folded sheet or group of sheets, thereby causing the foldedsheet or group of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web orwebs partly around one cylinder and the next succeeding folded sheet orgroup of sheets to carry the leading end or ends of the web or webspartly around the other cylinder, and a sheet delivery for each cylindercomprising a rotary delivery cylinder and an endless delivery carrier,the rotary delivery cylinders having two-thirds the surface speed of thecutting and folding cylinders.

6. In a folder, a pair of cutting and folding cylinders, means forfeeding a web or associated webs thereto, coacting cutting knives andblocks carried by said cylinders and arranged to almost sever successivesheets or groups of sheets from the web or webs, coasting folding bladesand jaws carried by said cylinders and arranged to fold alternate sheetsor groups of sheets to each cylinder and to tear each sheet or group ofsheets as it is being folded, from the next preceding folded sheet orgroup of sheets, thereby causing the folded sheet or group of sheets tocarry the leading end or ends of the web or webs partly around onecylinder and the next succeeding folded sheet or group of sheets tocarry the leading end or ends of the Web or webs partly around the othercylinder, and a sheet delivery for each cylinder.

JOSEPH E. MEYER.

